


Ebony

by nychus



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Depression, Fluff, Kitten, M/M, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-10
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-05-05 00:19:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 17,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14604987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nychus/pseuds/nychus
Summary: Ignis finds a kitten that he hopes will help Noctis through his bouts of depression.In turn, the kitten helps bring the two boys closer together.





	1. Enter Ebony

The days had been gloomy and Ignis knew that Noctis was feeling it. Winter could be a hard time for the teen. Cold, dark days that most often were not accompanied by snow. Snow was good. It didn’t matter if the ground was covered or if it was just some flakes coming from the sky, it always made Noctis smile.

Insomnia was currently working on its fifth grey day without any snow and with each passing day, Noctis fell farther into himself. Ignis had asked him once, what it was like, but Noctis had trouble finding the right words.

“It’s kind of like someone putting their hand in my chest and squeezing my heart, making it hard to breathe.” He knew that it didn’t make sense, but that was the best he could do to describe the feeling.

Ignis sighed. He wished there was something that he could do to help his friend, but he didn’t know what. He’d already tried all his usual tricks, but none of them stuck. They didn’t even stick as long as they usually did. The best way he could get Noctis to forget his troubles for a bit was to get him into a video game, but it was getting harder and harder to convince the prince to turn on the machine.

He was lost in thought as he made his usual walk from the grocery to Noctis’s apartment when a particularly brutal gust of wind pushed its way through the city street. Ignis was quick to sidestep into an alley to wait out the wind when he heard a small sneeze behind him.

Turning, he glanced around the alley to find the source of the sound. Another sneeze made a small box shudder and Ignis found the culprit.

A black kitten was wrinkling its nose as if it was going to sneeze a third time but didn’t in the end. It looked up at Ignis warily but didn’t seem afraid.

“Hello there,” Ignis said, carefully putting his hand out so the kitten could sniff it. “Is this your home?”

Ignis looked at the box and the surrounding area. The box did have a raggedy blanket on the inside and after a quick glance, he found part of a flyer that indicated the kitten had siblings that were free to a good home. Black cats weren’t especially popular, some seemed to think they were a sign of bad luck, so Ignis assumed it had been left to fend for itself. It looked like it could use a friend and Ignis knew just the friend for it.

“Come now,” Ignis encouraged the little animal and soon he was holding the kitten in his hand. It wasn’t extremely small, perhaps a few months old, and it wasn’t to the point of starving but Ignis could easily feel its little ribs.

Making sure the kitten was secure in his hand, Ignis gathered up his shopping and finished the walk to Noctis’s.

~*~*~*~*~

Noctis had cocooned himself in several blankets and had resigned himself to watching whatever trash tv had started because he was too lazy to find the remote. Besides the apartment was cold and he had just gotten comfortable.

Then there was a knock on the door. Noctis glanced at the time and knew that it would be Ignis, so he didn’t move. But the knocking continued and continued until Noctis yelled “I’M COMING!” as he angrily broke his cocoon and stomped over to the door.

He was nonplussed to see Ignis on the other side.

“Apologies, Noct, but my hands are full,” Ignis said, correctly reading the look on his face. “Would you mind?”

He would mind, actually, but Noctis didn’t have the energy to be an ass. Instead, he looked down to where Ignis was pushing out his interlocked arms and saw two very bright yellow eyes watching him.

His face instantly softened. “Who’s this?” Noctis asked as he gently plucked the kitten from Ignis’s arms.

“I don’t know,” Ignis answered. He moved towards the kitchen while Noctis took the kitten to the sofa. “I found it in an alley and I believe it suffers the black cat curse as it was the only one left in a box once full of kittens.”

“Poor thing,” Noctis cooed.

“Will you be alright for a little while so that I can go get it some necessities?” Ignis asked.

“Yeah,” Noctis smiled.

~*~*~*~*~

By the time Ignis returned to the apartment, Noctis was sitting on the floor dangling a string in front of the kitten’s face and watching it chase it around. And he was laughing. It had been far too long since Ignis had heard Noctis laugh so purely.

“I could get used to that,” Ignis said. He’d meant for it to be internal dialogue but somehow it escaped his lips.

“What? Me playing with a kitten?”

“You laughing.”

There was a blush on Noctis’s cheeks that made Ignis feel warm inside. He decided he should busy himself with setting the kitten up and hope that there wasn’t a blush on his own cheeks.

After a few minutes, the kitten had food, water, and litter set up for it. It was quite happy to drink some water and munch on some food. It sniffed at the litter and Ignis hoped that it knew the function for litter. Only time would tell.

With the kitten taken care of, it was time to take care of the people. Ignis busied himself in the kitchen while Noctis played; laughing and smiling the entire time. They ate to the kitten trying to play with their toes and Noctis insisted that he did the dishes so that Ignis could relax. Ignis wanted to refuse but Noctis pushed him onto the couch and told him to stay.

“Watch a movie before you leave?” Noctis asked as he joined Ignis on the sofa.

“I’d love to.” The responsibilities he had could wait a night. Noctis was in the first good mood he’d seen since the start of winter and he wanted to bask in it.

He was surprised when Noctis disassembled his blanket nest so that he could grab the softest one and toss it over Ignis’s legs. He was then pleasantly surprised when Noctis joined him under the blanket, curling into his side. It wasn’t long before their new friend clawed its way into the small space between them to curl up and sleep.

“Thanks, Iggy,” Noctis said quietly. “Thank you for bringing me Ebony.”

“Ebony?” Ignis queried, looking between prince and cat.

“Yeah, you have your pick-me-up and now I have mine.”

“Ebony,” Ignis repeated before daring to lean down just enough to plant a kiss on Noctis’s head. The prince said nothing but that sweet blush was back and a smiled played on his lips. “Ebony.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dunno, I needed some fluff and kittens.


	2. Peaceful Sleep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis can't sleep, but there are those that know how to help.

Evening had fallen fully into night, with less than an hour before the new day switched over. Noctis was tired, but sleep felt like the enemy at the moment. He’d go through phases where it didn’t matter how sleepy he was, something felt ominous about going to sleep. There was no reason for him to be worried and nothing ever happened, but it was troublesome. Eventually exhaustion would take over and sleep would come. It wouldn’t be a good sleep, however, and he’d wake up tired.

Then he’d catch flak for being tired. “Go to bed earlier” or “don’t take naps and you’d sleep” would be the brilliant suggestions others would give, but they didn’t understand. The naps helped him finish a day and they would have nothing to do with the inability to sleep that night. He’d try to explain it but people insisted it was because of the naps.

Noctis stared at his phone. It wasn’t even on and it felt like the best thing to look at for the moment. Unable to sleep, he was bored, but relieving the boredom required doing something. There wasn’t energy to do anything, not even to unlock his phone and idly surf the internet or something.

With a sigh, he burrowed a little deeper into his couch nest.

It was then that something pounced on his toes and sunk its claws into the blankets. Noctis leaned up just enough to look over his bent knees to see Ebony following the movement of his toes intently, waiting for another wiggle. Noctis obliged and even he couldn’t keep the smile off his face as he watched the kitten play.

Ebony had been with him for a few months now and had recently returned from being spayed. She wasn’t technically a kitten anymore, but she still acted like one. It was good to see her playful again, she had been fairly lethargic the last couple of days.

As she bounced around his feet, Noctis surreptitiously lifted his phone up just enough to get a few pics to send to Ignis. He would be happy to see Ebony had her spunk back.

For several minutes, Ebony stalked Noctis’s toes before she made her way up onto his chest. She bumped her head into his and purred loudly as she turned a few circles before settling on his chest, where she just stared.

“What?” he asked, looking back into those bright yellow eyes. Her only response was to continue to purr. He smiled again. No matter how awful he felt, Ebony had this ability to make him feel better. It was as if she knew when he needed her and there she would be, staring at him while purring loudly. Though, it was getting late, she may just want some food.

She wasn’t meowing at him though, so he figured he was safe there. Ebony had a tendency to be vocal if she actually wanted something.

He wasn’t sure how long they stared at each other but both were startled when the door to the apartment opened and closed. Two heads stared at the entrance to the great room, waiting to see who would come over so late.

He should have known it would be Ignis.

“What’s up?” Noctis asked as Ignis came to join him on the couch.

“I just wanted to see Ebony now that she was finally feeling frisky again,” Ignis replied, scratching the cat under the chin.

“Liar.”

“I was worried that you will still awake,” Ignis admitted. “As tired as you were at dinner I would have thought you would be passed out by now.” While he spoke, Ignis brushed Noctis’s hair out of his eyes and the prince was sure he was checking for a fever. “Is there anything I can do?”

“Stay?” Noctis asked.

“Of course. Is there anything else?” Noctis shook his head. “Alright, sit up.”

Confused, Noctis did as Ignis asked and was surprised when his adviser situated himself on Noctis’s side of the sofa, pulling the prince between his legs and allowing Noctis to use his chest as a pillow. Ebony, who had jumped off Noctis’s chest with a huff at the movement, jumped right back on once they were settled.

Noctis found himself nestled between his two favorite things.

He didn’t really pay attention to whatever Ignis had put on the television. Instead he focused on the comforting heartbeat of his oldest and dearest friend and the calming purr of the kitten sleeping on his chest.

With a yawn, he murmured, “Can we stay like this always?”

Ignis responded with “I’d love to,” but Noctis didn’t hear it. He did, however, feel the kiss placed on the top of his head as he finally drifted into a peaceful sleep.


	3. Homework Hinderer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As a cat, Ebony loves sitting on her humans' work. Also, the boys start acknowledging their appreciation for each other. Not TO each other, but for each other.

Ignis came into the apartment as Noctis was exiting his bedroom. After pleasantries, Ignis asked if Noctis had finished his homework.

“Nope.”

“Noct,” Ignis admonished with a shake of the head. “Have you at least read through the reports?”

“Nope.”

“Highness,” he said with more irritation in his voice.

“Do you want to tell her to get up?” Noctis asked, pointing towards the coffee table where Ebony was stretched out sleeping. Apparently, all of Noctis’s work made for a good bed. “I started on homework and she took over. I moved to the dining table to work on reports and here she comes. I went back to the homework, she follows. I brought the reports to the coffee table and she climbed on top. Hoping that would be enough, I went to the homework one last time and she just stretched over it all.”

“Yes, well,” Ignis frowned, looking at the sleeping cat. “Perhaps after dinner.” With that, he turned into the kitchen and started pulling out the necessary food and equipment while Noctis pulled up a stool to chat.

They discussed their days, any gossip, Noctis remembered to show Ignis a picture that Prompto had taken, and other mundane things the world at large would be surprised to know the Prince of Lucis lived for. After a time, Ebony decided to join the conversation and jumped up on the second stool to look over the counter. She knew the counter space was off limits. Ignis had made it clear very early on that she was not allowed where he prepared food. Usually she didn’t even attempt to get on the dining table, but if Noctis was working on something, it appeared she couldn’t help herself.

With dinner consumed Ebony made her way back to Noctis’s work and plopped down. She would be damned if he did any work tonight.

Ignis tutted, “You’ve taught her this.”

“I haven’t!” Noctis cried. “I bet she’d lose her mind if you also had work and she couldn’t be on top both our papers.”

Amused at the thought, Ignis went and grabbed the work he had intended on doing at home and deposited it on the dining table. Ebony watched him the entire time and once he was settled, she finally got up to inspect his work.

This gave Noctis an opening and he pulled his homework to his lap to start working.

The entire evening was spent with Ebony bothering both teens as they attempted to complete their work. They couldn’t even be annoyed with her because it was so cute. Noctis thought it was great to see her bat at the pen Ignis was using. Normally, he knew that Ignis would be upset, but it just wasn’t an emotion he could feel with Ebony. Instead of scolding her, he’d instead bop her lightly on the head with the end of the pen and then wave it in front of her to paw at.

Noctis loved that he was the only one to see this side of Ignis. Everyone else saw stern, studious, straight-laced Scientia; Noctis got to see him smile and laugh while playing with a kitten. Secretly, he thought that Ebony was as good to Ignis as she was to himself. Ever since she came into their lives, Ignis has been less stressed and around more often. All the tension from the previous year, with Noctis navigating high school, living on his own, more princely duties, and watching his father decay from maintaining the wall and Ignis trying to…actually, Noctis wasn’t sure what Ignis was thinking during that time. Trying to shield him from the worst of the Citadel politics? Trying to be more adviser than friend? Thinking Noctis needed an “adult” in his life? The prince wasn’t sure, but he was definitely glad that period had ended and they were friends again.

Once all their work was done (with Ignis bravely sacrificing himself to entertain Ebony so that Noctis could finish up) it was too late to watch a movie or anything. Ignis bid farewell and headed home. He was smiling all the way to his car, which earned him an odd look from the guardsman on duty. Once out of earshot, Ignis couldn’t help but laugh quietly to himself. He could imagine that guard telling one of the others he had seen Ignis smiling and the other guard not believing him. If only others knew how happy Noctis made him—Ebony as well—then they wouldn’t be so surprised. Fortunately, those moments in the apartment were for them and them alone and Ignis hoped to keep it that way for as long as he possibly could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've found some semblance of plot, so I'm gonna "uncomplete" this until the plot is done. That being said, I'm not super happy with this chapter, but I want to keep each chapter being a single night and this is just how this one went.


	4. Unhappy Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things were too good to last it seems.

Things had gone sideways and Noctis wasn’t sure what happened. After months of strengthening his friendship with Ignis, suddenly it was broken again. For no reason that Noctis could ascertain. One day he simply left right after dinner and that was it. Ignis wouldn’t stay any longer, not even to play with Ebony. Noctis had even tried to forego his homework so that Ignis would stay to help him, but Ignis wouldn’t allow it.

Then Prompto said something that kind of made sense if it were true.

“I am, like, ninety percent certain Ignis thinks we’re dating.”

It was a ridiculous notion. Noctis and Prompto had been friends for ages and had not once made any indication of dating.

Except, okay, maybe they were handsy with each other. Prompto had a thing for getting all up in Noctis’s personal bubble and Noctis allowed it. Butt slaps, hugs, squeezed tightly in an armchair, or the number of times Prompto would just deem it acceptable to sit on Noctis’s lap. That was just how their relationship was. Had been since almost day one.

But Ignis never spent much time around the pair when they were allowed to be themselves. All of this did seem to start the one day Ignis stayed longer than normal on Friday night. Friday night was Prompto’s night to come over and the pair would rot their brains on video games. Ignis was usually heading out the door as Prompto was headed in. That Friday, however, there was some repair work going on in Ignis’s apartment, so he stayed until the repairs were done. Prompto and Noctis acted just as they always did and perhaps Ignis got the wrong idea.

That was no reason for Ignis to act this way though. Making himself scarce on Fridays might have been an okay reaction except that was already the norm. Prompto never came over on weeknights unless they had a project to work on and that was rare. Why would Ignis leave so quickly?

Noctis didn’t know and he didn’t want to ask. He also couldn’t figure out why it bothered him so much. Yes, he missed his friend, but there was something more, something else that he couldn’t put his finger on.

He’d ask Ebony from time to time, but she was just as confused as he was.

It was Friday and as soon as Noctis got home from school and comfortable, he buried himself into the blankets on his couch. Ebony hopped up to inspect him (sniffing at his face) before settling down as well. After a moment, Noctis decided he was going to will away his depression until Ignis left, assuming he came at all. He really didn’t want to deal with Ignis in caregiver mode tonight. With an apology to Ebony, Noctis stood back up and straightened the apartment some. If Ignis didn’t show up before 17:00, Noctis knew he wouldn’t come. He could handle a few hours of feigning happiness.

It was a quarter until 17:00 when Ignis came into the apartment. He apologized for needing to leave quickly as he started getting dinner fixed.

“It’s no problem,” Noctis said, hoping he sounded normal.

“I suppose Prompto will be here soon anyway.”

“Not tonight, actually.”

This caused Ignis to look up at the prince. “Oh? Why not?”

“He’s got a date tonight,” Noctis said with a smile. A genuine smile at that. He’d been telling Prompto for ages to ask her out and he finally did. Tonight was their first date.

“A date?”

“Yep. She’s a regular at the diner, family friend or something, and they have been flirting with each other for months. MONTHS. It’s been painful to watch. I’ve been begging him to ask her out. I was so excited for him when she said yes. He’s been all nervous and I had to yell at him to stop texting me questions, but I think they’ll have fun.”

“What are your plans for the night then?” Ignis asked.

“Me? I’ve got a hot date too.” Ignis arched an eyebrow in question. “Yep. She’s got beautiful black hair, the most gorgeous yellow eyes, and the sweetest voice that she likes to use in the middle of the night after she has killed one of her toys.”

From the sofa where Ebony was sitting came a soft meow. Both teens chuckled.

“I’ll watch a movie or something. I dunno,” Noctis said more seriously. “I would have asked if you wanted to do something, but you’ve been so busy lately I didn’t figure you could. Turned out to be true.”

For a moment, Noctis forgot he was trying to feign happiness and let out a sigh. He then tried to cover it up as if it were a yawn, but he doubted he succeeded.

Ignis frowned, “Yes, well, things have been rather busy as of late.”

There was something in Ignis’s tone that sounded sad or guilty and Noctis almost asked if he had done something wrong but didn’t. Instead he continued with the new norm of leaving Ignis be while he cooked and going back to the couch. He found something mildly interesting to watch while Ignis was in the apartment. Once the meal (some sort of casserole) was in the oven, Ignis bid farewell. Although, it seemed like he was a little reluctant to leave. Still, Noctis waved him out and finally settled into the depression that was aching to be released.

“What did I do, Ebony?” Noctis asked the cat sitting next to him. “What did I do?”

A couple of hours later, Noctis had managed to eat a few bites of the casserole and had begun contemplating just going to bed. Sure, it was barely after 19:00 but who cared? No one. Prompto was on a date, Ignis was wherever, the Amicitias had a family dinner every Friday, and his dad was always too busy for him. Who was he but the prince of loneliness whose only friend couldn’t even speak to him.

His phone buzzed and Noctis ignored it, positive it was Prompto giving an update on his date. As happy as he was for his friend, he really did not want to hear about his evening.

It buzzed a second and third time in quick succession, yet Noctis ignored it in favor of whatever ridiculous show he was watching. Something about people who lived in a swamp and caught catfish with their bare hands. Noctis could feel his braincells dying immediately upon paying attention. The people portrayed were terrible stereotypes (he imagined, he couldn’t say he’d met swamp people before) and sounded too dumb to know how to breathe.

This was how Ignis found him: staring blankly at idiots on the television. He only noticed Ignis was there when the television was suddenly turned off.

“Noct?”

“Oh, hey, Iggy.”

“Are you alright? You didn’t answer my texts.”

Noctis glanced at the phone, “Oh, that was you? I assumed it was Prompto. Sorry.”

Ignis sat on the edge of the coffee table and watched him closely. “You didn’t want to talk to Prompto?”

“I’m just not in the mood to hear about his date,” Noctis answered.

There were a few moments of silence before Ignis cautiously asked, “Jealous?”

“No,” he answered, almost too quickly and then, “Maybe? It’s not that I don’t want him to date, it’s just if it works out, I might not be able to hang with him on Friday nights anymore. And I’ve already lost you, so it feels like I’m being left behind or something. I don’t know.”

Ignis sighed, “Oh, Noctis. My sincerest apologies for my absence these last several weeks. I have been…dealing with something.”

“Something you couldn’t talk to me about?” Noctis asked, knowing he sounded petulant, but it did hurt to think he wasn’t a good enough friend to talk to.

“No, unfortunately, it something only I can figure out for myself.” Ignis leaned forward and brushed some of Noctis’s stray hairs from his face. “I need time before I can speak about it with anyone. I am very sorry that I have been so self-involved that I hadn’t realized how much I was hurting you.”

“It’s fine.” It wasn’t, but Noctis didn’t want to say that.

“No, it’s not. I will try to be better,” Ignis said. “I cannot promise there won’t be days I need to leave early, but I will do my best to make them fewer.” Ignis stopped speaking for a moment and looked as if something dawned on him. With a sad smile, he said, “I will definitely work harder to realize when you are asking me to stay. Astrals, I was an ass making you get your homework done so that I could leave quicker. Oh, Noctis, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” This time, Noctis almost meant it.

Both were lost in thought for several moments. It was Noctis that broke the silence.

“Would you like to stay and watch a movie?”

“I would, if that is okay. Find something and I’ll be right back.”

Noctis watched him with trepidation, wondering if he was going to leave the apartment. He didn’t. He went to the kitchen to put away the casserole and pop some popcorn. He grabbed them some drinks before heading back to the couch. He sat on the part of the sectional fully facing the television, leaving a full cushion between himself and where Noctis was curled up in the corner. He placed the popcorn on that cushion for easy reach.

It wasn’t quite like it was before what with the silence and distance, but Noctis figured it was a step in the right direction. Again. They had fixed their relationship once, they could do it again. He did feel oddly empty with Ignis so far away. He missed the contact and the comfort that Ignis always provided. At least he had Ebony, who was planted firmly in his lap and eyeing Ignis like he might suddenly turn on them.

At least Ebony was on his side, Noctis thought. Though, he longed for the day where he could curl up next to Ignis again with a sleeping kitty between them.


	5. Ignis the Idiot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The internal struggles of Ignis Scientia

Ignis felt like an idiot. He had been so wrapped up in his own internal struggles that he completely failed to notice how his actions were affecting Noctis.

Noctis, the one person who he had once sworn never to hurt. And then never to hurt again after the tensions of the previous year.

He kept glancing over at the prince, laying on the couch and absently petting Ebony while watching tv. Ebony, for her part, was staring hard at Ignis. It was if she was further cementing the fact that it was all his fault. Honestly, he couldn’t blame her.

If only he had a better sense of the emotions he had long ago learned how to suppress. Future advisers to the crown weren’t allowed to feel emotions, they just got in the way of the issue. Advisers had to think where their heads and not their hearts. Ignis learned how to school those emotions and pretend as if he didn’t have any. The problem was, after pretending for so long, he kind of forgot what it was like to show emotion; at least in front of other people.

Ignis knew that that was a main contributor to the falling out he and Noctis had the year previous. He hadn’t been able to find the words until everything just exploded out in anger.

When Ebony came along, she managed to break through that shield and Ignis found laughter and smiles all the easier to express. Even King Regis had noticed how happier and more relaxed Ignis seemed.

Everything fell apart when Ignis stayed late one Friday and he watched Noctis and Prompto interact with each other as if he wasn’t there. They were so close and jealousy erupted in Ignis heart in a way that physically hurt. He had never felt anything but fondness for Prompto before but at that moment, for the briefest of seconds, Ignis wanted to throw him out the door and not necessarily the front one.

It was an unsettling feeling and Ignis wasn’t sure where it came from. At the time, he knew his best course of action was to put some distance between himself and the situation. While he did that, he tried to figure out exactly what was going on. Why had that evening created such a reaction?

He never really believed they were dating. He was fairly certain that Noctis would have said something if they were. When he off-handedly said something to Prompto about Fridays being the designated date night, the younger teen’s eyes got as wide as saucers.

“Date night?” Prompto stuttered in disbelief. Ignis had to clarify he didn’t mean it as a romantic date, just a time set aside for the pair to play video games.

He had the feeling Prompto left the conversation thinking that Ignis thought the pair were dating.

Again, it wasn’t something he thought was happening, but Ignis found a great sense of relief to know the truth.

It was another couple of days before Ignis realized where the jealousy came from. He was in love with the prince.

All those years learning to block emotions and knowing his time would be spent mostly fulfilling his duty to the crown, Ignis hadn’t really given much thought to romantic relationships. That wasn’t to say he hadn’t experimented some, but nothing serious ever came from the experimental kisses or awkward handjobs. Now he thought he was absolutely in love with Noctis.

He thought—hoped?—that it was just a matter of convenience. They had spent so much time together that things got twisted in Ignis’s brain. Logically, he knew it was a pointless feeling. Noctis was prince, he would marry a woman, likely noble, and father an heir to the crown. Even in the unlikely chance Noctis returned his feelings, they would never be allowed together, if only for the simple fact no child could be born.

As Ignis was trying to work past these feelings and the internal struggles they created, he failed to notice that Noctis needed him as a friend. He only just realized that the nights Noctis hadn’t worked on his homework before Ignis got there was so that Ignis would have some reason to stay longer. Astrals, how many times did he punish Noctis for his own failings? It wasn’t fair to the prince and he knew he had to be better.

The movie was over and Ignis realized he hadn’t watched a single minute of it. He’d been lost in his thoughts the entire time. Next to him, Noctis was dead to the world. Ignis couldn’t help but smile. At least in sleep Noctis could experience some peace.

Ebony hopped off the prince as Ignis carefully picked him up to deposit him on his bed. He watched him for a moment before exiting the bedroom and cleaning what little mess was made around the coffee table. He made sure Ebony had food and water before gathering his things to leave.

He almost didn’t come back over tonight. He almost just let things be. But that little sigh that escaped after Noctis said he’d just watch a movie was etched into his brain. Ignis hoped he was wrong, but when Noctis didn’t answer any texts, he knew he wasn’t.

Things gathered, Ebony walked him to the door, stopping just short of the little step up. With a good scratch to the ear, Ignis told her, “I’ll do better. I promise.”

The quiet “murr” she responded with told him she was going to hold him to that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember when this started out as nothing but fluff and how a kitten could bring happiness to those in need?
> 
> What happened to that story? How did it all get away from me!?!
> 
> Back to fluff next chapter.


	6. Homework Help

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Homework is not supposed to expose one's traitorous heart.

Things were better after that night. Sort of.

Ignis was over most days again and staying past dinner. Conversation was mostly casual, though Noctis sometimes felt like Ignis was trying hard to not say some things. And the casual touching was gone.

For most of Noctis’s life, Ignis had been his comfort. Any time he needed a hug or just someone to lean on, Ignis always allowed him. But not anymore. Now Ignis was very careful to keep a physical distance. Noctis wanted to ask but he was afraid that everything would go south again.

So, he kept quiet and told himself to enjoy what time he had with Ignis again. Although he couldn’t really figure out why it was still bothering him. Ignis was back. He apologized, admitted he was at fault, and he was back. So why did it almost seem worse now that Noctis wasn’t allowed to touch?

The answer came, funnily enough, while Noctis was working on his homework with Ignis in the kitchen. It was for his literature class, they were reading a classic romance and the assignment was to compare and contrast the ways that couples courted then (when the book was written) and now.

Noctis started with all the things people did today. Calling, texting, those gross prom-posal things. Guys making idiots out of themselves to impress a girl and girls just giggling madly in the direction of guys. Personally, Noctis didn’t see the appeal in all of that. He preferred the subtle flirting in the novel. Quiet talks over coffee or sitting in a garden just being. Perhaps it was because of his upbringing and how eyes were always on him, that the thought of parents being present didn’t bother him that much. He briefly thought about Ignis being the adult making sure nothing untoward happened. A smile crossed his lips as he thought of Ignis glaring down Noctis’s partner should they try to touch him in anyway only to turn around and allow Noctis to climb all over him for comfort later.

 _Ignis would be sure to keep everyone in line,_ Noctis thought, glancing over to his adviser in the kitchen. _Everyone but himself._ That suited Noctis fine. He couldn’t imagine wanting to be close to anyone like he was Ignis.

That was when it hit him. He was looking at the list of things from the novel and realized that basically all those things were ways he and Ignis interacted naturally. He looked up at Ignis again. The other man was tending the food and had his back to Noctis, completely unaware of the internal breakdown the prince was having.

Ignis. His first friend and for a long time, his only friend. His partner in crime and the only one Noctis has ever let get so close. This ache and emptiness that Noctis had been feeling was because he was in love with Ignis.

Love? No. No. That was a dumb thought. He was seventeen, what did he know about love?

At some point, Noctis realized that Ignis was calling his name and looking concerned.

“Are you alright?” Ignis asked.

“Yeah, yeah, sorry, I was just, uh, just thinking,” Noctis said. For a moment it looked like Ignis wanted to ask what he was thinking about, but Noctis was grateful that he didn’t. Ignis stared at him for a few moments before saying that dinner was ready and Noctis thought the distance thing might be a good idea in the end.

He did not want to make a fool of himself until he calmed his traitorous heart. His stupid heart that would fall in love with the one person he could never be good enough for, never mind the fact that there was no way Ignis could ever return his feelings.

That night, after Ignis left, Noctis had a long conversation with Ebony about it. He was trying desperately to talk himself out of this ridiculous notion of love.

Ebony just watched him with a knowing look on her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got distracted by Jurassic World Evolution...it, uh, kinda took over my life for a week and I'm still playing it a bit. Making parks, lamenting the look of the _Deinonychus_ because WTF game, why did you put a stupid crest on it's head? And make it smaller than the raptor? The first one I had I named "NYCHUS WHUT?!" and cried a little. It's my fave dino (hence the username) and I hate seeing it so....dumb looking.
> 
> Anyway, _I'm-not-a-dino-paleontologist-but-I-still-have-opinions_ complaints aside, have a chapter. It's not really fluff, but fluffier than the next two.


	7. A Sick Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The flu sucks

Noctis had been acting weird for the last few weeks, and Ignis couldn’t figure out why. He had always prided himself on his ability to read the prince and help him work through the things Noctis didn’t realize he needed help on; but Ignis was completely stumped.

It didn’t help that Noctis was suddenly trying to do things without Ignis. (“What? I need to grow up sometime.”) which meant that Ignis wasn’t around him enough to parse through his actions.

A part of him realized this was exactly how he’d been treating Noctis the previous few weeks.

However, Noctis was Noctis and despite his sudden want to be fully independent, there were still some issues that Ignis couldn’t ignore.

Which was why he found himself outside of Noctis’s apartment in the middle of the morning after a text from Prompto asked why Noctis wasn’t at school. Ignis had to excuse himself out of a meeting to be here. He didn’t want to think of what he’d be volunteered to do since he was away.

He knocked and waited a few seconds, wanting to give Noctis time to answer the door before barging in. It wasn’t Noctis’s voice that came through the door, but Ebony’s loud yowl. Immediately Ignis let himself in and followed the cat to the bathroom where Noctis was in naught but his boxer briefs and curled up next to the toilet.

“Gods, Noctis,” Ignis said, kneeling to feel for a temperature. Ignis didn’t need to touch him to feel the heat radiating off of his body.

First things first was to get Noctis off the bathroom floor, which Ignis was quick to do. He then took Noctis into the guestroom where he could be on clean sheets. Once he got Noctis tucked into bed, Ignis called the doctor to ask if he’d come over, Regis to let him know that Noctis was sick, the school to tell them where Noctis was, and his uncle to gather any work he might miss over the next few days while he took care of the prince.

~*~*~*~*~

Everything hurt. Noctis shifted a little and tried to open his eyes and earned exhaustion for his efforts. There was a soft thump on the floor near him and Noctis managed to get his eyes open enough to see a fluffy black tail disappear through the door. He wanted to call for Ebony, beg her to come back, but before he could gather the energy she sauntered back into the room with Ignis trailing behind.

“Good, you’re awake,” Ignis smiled as he knelt next to the bed, brushing Noctis’s bangs from his eyes. “Do you think you can sit up and drink some water for me?”

“Yeah,” Noctis said and with the help of Ignis, managed to sit up in bed. Ignis handed him the glass and it was then he realized how thirsty he was. He was allowed one full glass but Ignis insisted he sip through the second one. Leaning his head back and closing his eyes, Noctis said, “I feel like shit.”

“I imagine you do. I found you on the bathroom floor and you haven’t so much as twitched since I got here.”

“I kept throwing up until there was nothing left, not that my body seemed to notice. I guess I eventually passed out.” It took some effort to turn his head and open his eyes to look at Ignis. “Why am I in the guestroom?”

“You needed to be on clean sheets and after I got your bed re-made, I didn’t want to risk waking you with movement.”

Noctis hummed at the response. Made sense.

“Your father should be here soon. The doctor said it was just the flu, which is best treated with fluids and rest, both of which you are currently working on.”

“Dad’s coming?” Noctis asked, surprised. The clock in the room said it was 15:34. “Doesn’t he have that meeting with the people from Accordo this afternoon?”

The look on Ignis’s face indicated that he was surprised Noctis would remember that, but all he answered was, “He worked hard on rearranging and cancelling other meetings so that he could meet with them sooner. They were very understanding and sorry that they couldn’t postpone their leave a day later so that he could be here sooner. My uncle sent a text a few minutes ago saying the meeting had adjourned. I imagine your father will head straight here.”

Ignis’s intuition was correct. As soon as Regis was finished with his meeting he got in his car and came straight over. For a long time Noctis allowed his father to dote on him. He kept asking if there was anything he needed or wanted and he kept apologizing for taking so long to get there. Noctis did his best to reassure his father but he was secretly pleased to know how much Regis still cared.

After a couple of hours, Noctis fell back to sleep and Regis left. When he woke, Ebony once again jumped off the bed to get Ignis. This time he came in with some chicken noodle soup. It was mostly broth but Noctis didn’t mind. It felt good in his stomach.

While he ate, Ignis sat in a nearby armchair and pulled out some papers to read.

“That looks exciting,” Noctis commented sarcastically.

“Oh, yes, this is quite the page-turner,” Ignis replied. “I cannot wait to see the amount of funds set aside for the annual Firelight Festival. I think they may up the budget to 3000 crowns this year.” Ignis turned the page, “Alas, they didn’t. I suppose the shock is in repetition and not change like one expects.”

Even as bad as he felt, Noctis couldn’t help but laugh a little. After a second, he frowned, “I’m sorry that you have to worry about council stuff while taking care of me.”

“How is this different than any other day?” Ignis asked with a smirk. Before Noctis could answer, he continued, “I have to send my opinion in on this for the meeting tomorrow, but this is the last thing I have to do before I can focus solely on you.”

“I’ll leave you too it, then,” Noctis said and he went back to focusing on his dinner.


	8. Kitty Got Wet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sick day spent in the apartment brings about some enlightening conversation (and a very wet cat).

Noctis spent the night in the guest room, having fallen asleep after dinner and Ignis not wanting to disturb him. He felt much better the second day, very glad that his insides were happy to keep food and drink down, but still very exhausted. He did manage to get to and from the bathroom with only a little help though, so that was an improvement over the day before.

That second day, Noctis returned to his room where he slept on and off for the whole of the day. Sometimes he would wake to find Ignis sitting in bed with him reading. He’d always lean into Ignis when that happened. Part of him worried about Ignis getting sick as well but he couldn’t stop himself from enjoying the contact.

On the third day, he was allowed to camp out on the couch and watch television while Ignis busied himself around the apartment. Every so often Ignis’s phone would buzz and he’d watch as his adviser sent off a quick text or two before putting the phone down again. There was definitely some guilt building in Noctis’s stomach at the fact that Ignis was forced be here with him and not at the Citadel, doing his job.

Except, he was his job. Ignis’s main job was to look after and take care of Noctis. It always hurt when the prince remembered that fact because inevitably he would start to spiral into that space in his head that told him Ignis was only around because he was paid to be. If he wasn’t getting paid, he would have left long ago.

Noctis leaned his head into the sofa and shut his eyes. Ebony, sensing this sudden change in emotion, was quick to jump in his lap and start rubbing her face on his. He gave her a few strokes down her body and a quick chin scratch before he asked, “You still get paid to be here, right?”

~*~*~*~*~

Ignis’s head lifted so quickly from the text he was replying too he was surprised that his neck didn’t snap. Where did that come from? “What?”

“Even though you’re stuck here with me, you still get paid, right?”

“Well, yes,” Ignis answered slowly. He walked over to the couch and sat on the corner of the coffee table, watching Noctis. “But what does that have to do with anything?”

“Just that, I don’t know, you get to lose a day of work but still get paid. That’s pretty nice.”

“I suppose, but you know that it doesn’t matter that I’m getting paid, right?” The prince gave a half-hearted shrug and a noncommittal grunt. Ignis’s heart broke. “Noctis, do you think that I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t getting paid?”

“I dunno. Maybe.”

Ebony was purring loudly in Noctis’s lap and Ignis knew she was trying to give him comfort. He had always wondered if Noctis ever thought about the fact that Ignis was essentially paid to just be with him. The prince had never said anything about it before but, Ignis supposed, being ill can have that effect on people. He always wondered what he would say should Noctis bring up that point but nothing ever came to mind. Granted, he tried not to dwell on it because he hoped that no matter how deep his friend’s dark thoughts took him, he would know Ignis was there because he wanted to be.

“Oh, Noct,” Ignis said as he moved to the couch and shifted Noctis so that the prince’s head was in his lap. He started to card his fingers through Noctis’s gross, sweaty hair. “I’m here because I want to be, not because I have to be.”

“There must be a million things you would rather be doing, though.”

“Yes, because that would mean you wouldn’t be ill and I wouldn’t be beside myself with worry over you. But you are ill and there is no where I’d rather be than making sure you get better.”

The prince opened his mouth to refute, but Ignis stopped him.

“Noctis, stop. I am here because I want to be here, not because I am being paid. I wish I wasn’t getting paid. It never sat well with me, earning money to be your friend. It cheapens our relationship and my love for you. I hate how others try to use it against me. Mostly I hate that it causes any sort of doubt in your mind about me.”

Ignis let out a breath. He hadn’t meant to say all of that but it needed to be said. He looked down at Noctis and smiled. “I’ve never used any of the money I’ve earned for being with you.”

“Huh?” Noctis asked, confused.

“When I first started getting paid, I was much too young to deal with those kinds of earnings. Besides, Uncle was taking care of me and I didn’t need it. We put it into a bank account for later use. But when I officially started working as your adviser, I got paid for council work and office work. It was still much more than I needed until I moved out on my own. My wages from the Citadel allow me to live comfortably and I can still treat myself upon occasion. 

“So, I’ve never touched the money that came from looking after you. Again, it never felt right to me, getting paid to do something I wanted to do anyway. I always thought we could spend it together. Go on a trip or buy something ridiculously stupid. Something that would be ours and only ours. Astrals know there is more than enough there to do anything we wanted and still have plenty left over to make significant donations to several charities.”

“I like that idea,” Noctis smiled. He nuzzled his face into Ignis’s thigh. There was a soft “murr” from Ebony. “I think she likes it too. Although I imagine her idea of something ridiculously stupid involves a large quantity of catnip.”

Ignis chuckled.

They sat in silence for a moment when Ignis said, “You really need a bath.” This earned a groan from Noctis. “You’ll feel better, Noct.”

“But it’s too much like work. It’s hard enough to just go to the bathroom.”

“I’ll draw you a bath, help you into the bathroom, and then all you’ll have to do is undress and sink into the water. How much work is that really?”

The prince scrunched his nose and Ignis could tell from the look on his face that he was very aware the bath would happen no matter what. Eventually he grumbled “Fine” and Ignis got up to get things fixed.

Ignis couldn’t remember the last time he’d drawn a bath for Noctis. It was well before the apartment. He would have them ready for Noctis to relax in after training until his muscles acclimated to the intense workout. It was also when Noctis was very sensitive about the scar on his back and he’d refuse to shower in the locker room. The insecurities lessened and even though Noctis will still find the most secluded area in a mostly empty locker room, he was showering there now.

Once everything was ready, Ignis walked with Noctis to the bathroom and helped pull off his shirt before heading back out into the living room. He left the bathroom door open so that Noctis could just call out if he needed anything. Collapsing on the couch, Ignis heard his phone buzz from across the room. He glanced over to it but ultimately decided he’d look at the text later. He wasn’t supposed to be working but there still seemed to be a never-ending stream of questions about things.

Instead he leaned back and closed his eyes. For several minutes he sat there, relishing in the feeling of Noctis laying on him. He missed the warm comfort of his friend but he was afraid of where his mind might go if he allowed that closeness again. It was one thing to permit it while Noctis was ill but once he was better…

A yowl and a scream jerked Ignis from his thoughts. He stood up in time to see Ebony streak across living room and into the guestroom. Her normally fluffy fur weighed down with water and a few bubbles. Fearing what damage she might have done to Noctis, Ignis took off into the bathroom.

“Are you alright?” he asked as soon as he entered. The question was lost on Noctis though as his head was resurfacing. “Are you alright?” he asked the sputtering prince again.

“Yeah, yeah, she just surprised me, that’s all,” Noctis answered, wiping bubbles from his face.

“What happened?”

“She was curious about the bubbles, I think, and probably the tub being filled with water. She walked over the knobs and faucet and I realized she was probably going to fall in, so I pulled my legs up. She panicked more than I thought she would, though, and I pushed back to get away but then my feet slipped and I slid under the water.”

Ignis worked hard to not laugh at the image and he mostly succeeded.

“Now I have to wash my hair,” Noctis mumbled.

“Not a bad thing,” Ignis said. “Your hair was quite disgusting.”

“Yeah, but more work,” Noctis pouted, sinking into the tub until his nose was just above the bubbles.

Ignis rolled his eyes in fondness and then rolled up his sleeves. He leaned over Noctis’s head to get the shampoo bottle before sitting on the edge of the tub. “Sit up,” he said as he poured some shampoo into his hands.

Noctis did as commanded and Ignis started to massage the soap into his hair. It wasn’t until Noctis gave a small moan of content that it finally occurred to him exactly what he was doing. Washing the hair of a very naked prince who he was very much in love with. With that realized, he immediately stopped what he was doing, horrified with himself. Then Noctis opened his eyes and looked up at him, asked if he was done, and Ignis realized he didn’t want to deny his love for Noctis. He swore he would never say anything to anyone; but trying to suppress these feelings had only brought heartache to the both of them. He apologized and continued—feeling happier and freer than he had in weeks.

After the impromptu scalp massage, Ignis left Noctis be to rinse off in the shower and dress. As he exited the bathroom he saw Ebony sitting there looking ridiculous being so wet. She wasn’t sopping wet anymore but she was clearly unhappy at her current state of being.

With a quiet laugh, Ignis grabbed a towel and wrapped it around the cat to give her a few good rubs.

“What are we going to do with you?” he asked as he sat her on the sofa next to him.

He never got an answer other than for her to curl up on his lap for some warmth. When Noctis emerged from his bedroom dressed and clean, the prince laid his head next to the sleeping Ebony leaving Ignis with what amounted to two cats in his lap to card his fingers through.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The fluff resumes! YAY!


	9. Back to Normal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get back to normal for the boys.

It took a week for Noctis to feel like a fully functional human again, but it wasn’t so bad with both Ebony and Ignis around to help him out. He didn’t really want to go back to school but Noctis could tell that Ignis was getting a bit twitchy from being inside for so long and if Ignis wasn’t going to be around, Noctis knew he couldn’t be either.

Noctis couldn’t say he was pleased with getting better, as that meant Ignis returned home. He’d grown quite fond of the thought that Ignis was asleep in the other room and within easy reach. It felt like they were kids again; close enough to get into trouble but smart enough not to.

There was also the fact that Noctis was afraid he actual human contact he’d gotten the past week would go away. He loved Ebony and she was a fairly good substitute but nothing could really compare to curling into Ignis when he was having a bad day.

Much to his surprise, everything returned to the normal set when Ebony first joined them. Later nights of laughter and movies. Noctis able to use Ignis a human pillow. Ebony happily squeezing herself between the two to sleep. This, if nothing else, was all that Noctis really wanted in life. More would be great, but he wasn’t dumb enough to think he could ever be good enough for Ignis.

Besides, he would try to convince himself, he’d likely have a political marriage anyway. Sure, it’s been generations since there was one, but it’d be his luck.

Time went by and all was well. Everyone was happy. Noctis and Prompto continued their Friday night gaming sessions (Ignis never stayed around for them as per usual). The boys’ final year of high school was going well, each passing their classes and exams with flying colors. Both were also doing well with their jobs at the diner.

With winter came the more frequent bouts of depression that Noctis suffered. It was an inevitable part of life and he had long ago learned to live with it. Ebony made it easier because it truly was hard to stay sad when she was chasing strings, laser pointers, or ghosts only she could see. Ignis was also easier to get a hold of during these times, happy to show up with a new pastry attempt or a movie suggestion for the evening.

They celebrated Ignis’s 20th birthday as only they could. Noctis, Prompto, and Gladio showing up at Ignis’s apartment with his favorite food from the Citadel and terrible movies for them to pick apart all night long.

A few weeks later, Noctis and Ignis celebrated the anniversary of Ebony coming into their lives. They got her some new toys, a soft new bed, a climbing tree, and a little bit of catnip. True to her cat instincts, Ebony preferred the wrapping the toys came in, ignored the bed, and only looked at the tree once Ignis rubbed some of the catnip on it. She came to love the top of the tree where she could look down on everyone. It would be a few weeks before she would actively play with her new toys. The bed lay completely forgotten.

All in all, it wasn’t a terrible time for Noctis and his friends. It could always be better but it could always be a lot worse. For now, Noctis would take a few days of depression if it meant the rest of his life was going alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is totally just a transition chapter before I rip out the boys' hearts.
> 
> That's cool, right?


	10. Emergency

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ebony has an emergency and it leaves the boys broken.

Ignis was on his way to a meeting when his phone started buzzing in his pocket. With a sigh, he pulled it out to see that it was Noctis calling. For the briefest second, he thought about ignoring it so that he could get to the meeting. Sense kicked in almost immediately because Ignis would never ignore a call from the prince.

“Noct?” was all he got out when a very upset Noctis started talking frantically.

“Iggy, you gotta come get me. Ebony…something’s wrong with Ebony and she needs to go to the vet but I can’t take her alone. Please come. Please. I…I can’t do this alone.”

“I’ll be right there.”

Ignis turned on his heel and started running back to his office. As he flew past the office assistant’s desk, he told him to let someone know an emergency has come up and he would be out of the office the rest of the day. He dropped off what he was carrying, grabbed his keys, and ran to the elevator.

What had happened to Ebony? His mind started working through ways she could have broken a leg or maybe gotten into something toxic but he couldn’t really make any of those scenarios work. Noctis was devastated. The tears, the hitch in his breath, and the tone of utter defeat gripped Ignis’s heart like a vise.

Gods damned why was this elevator so slow?! He was fidgeting, bouncing on his feet and ready to run as soon as the doors opened on this parking level. The others in the carriage were watching him with concerned looks, but no one said anything. Ignis nearly knocked over the two waiting to get on the elevator once the doors opened and he could run to his car.

Thankfully traffic was light as it was post-rush hour and pre-lunch. It took hardly any time for Ignis to get to Noctis’s apartment building. As he got close, he pulled out his phone to call but before he could hit Noctis’s contact number he saw the prince exiting the building with Ebony’s carrier in hand. The car barely stopped before Noctis was crawling into the back seat.

“Noct, what happened?” Ignis asked as he pulled back on the street. The prince looked awful: bloodshot eyes, red cheeks, disheveled hair and clothes.

“I dunno,” Noctis said with a sniff. “I couldn’t find her when I got up. I looked everywhere and when I still couldn’t find her, I texted Prompto to say I’d be late for school. I wasn’t going to go until I knew she was okay. It took a little while but eventually I found her huddled under the guest bed in the darkest corner behind some boxes.

“She wouldn’t come to me, Ignis. She wouldn’t come. I thought…I thought…” a loud sniff, “and then I saw her eyes open. She still wouldn’t come so I had to drag her out. She was lethargic and didn’t really move once I had her in my lap. I took her to her water bowl and put her down. She wasn’t interested in drinking or eating. Then…then…then when she started walking, gods Ignis, it was like she was drunk. She couldn’t walk straight and she would fall over. I couldn’t, Iggy, I just couldn’t…”

“The vet knows we’re coming?” Ignis asked needing to break the train of thought.

“Yeah, yeah, um, I called them first and then you.”

Minutes later they were parked and headed into the vet’s office. The staff there had always been kind to Ebony and they certainly weren’t shy about giving her extra care because she was the cat of the prince. It was the only time that Noctis didn’t seem to mind his status being used for something.

They were instantly taken into an exam room and the vet tech pulled Ebony out and started the usual exam: temperature, weight, and the like. There was no temperature and the weight was fine.

When the doctor came in, he did his own hands-on exam before placing Ebony on the floor to see how she moved about.

Noctis was right, it was awful seeing her walk. She couldn’t keep a straight line and every few steps she’d fall on her side. Watching her, Noctis grabbed Ignis’s hand and squeezed hard. Ignis squeezed back. At the moment, it was all he could do. He didn’t trust himself to say anything and he knew he needed to be strong for the heartbroken prince beside him.

The doctor placed Ebony back on the exam table and looked carefully into her eyes. A moment later he said he could see some twitchiness.

“Based on what I’m seeing, I think that Ebony had a stroke,” the vet said. “It’s rare for cats so young to have one, but not unheard of. As she seems otherwise healthy, I think this is probably just a fluke. We will take blood and urine samples to analyze, but until we know for sure, there isn’t much we can do but wait.”

“So…” Ignis started, but his voice cracked a bit with the word.

“I’ll give her a steroid shot that should help her feel better and we’ll inject some subcutaneous fluid to be sure she stays hydrated, but otherwise, we wait.”

“Can we take her home?” Noctis asked.

The vet smiled, “Yes, she would be happier there. I honestly believe this was just a one-off. Cats bounce back from strokes much more easily than humans do. It may take a few weeks before she’s fully back to herself, but she’ll get there.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Ignis said, shaking the man’s hand. Noctis came and did the same thing.

Half an hour later they were back in Noctis’s apartment. They set Ebony up with all her favorite things near her food and water bowls only to have her slink off to be under the guestroom bed again. Noctis wanted to keep her within his sight but Ignis managed to convince him to let her be.

“She’ll come out when she’s ready,” Ignis told him, pulling him to the couch. Noctis curled into him and he gripped Noctis for all he was worth. They sat in silence for several moments before Noctis finally broke down completely.

“I just…I just don’t know what I would do without her,” he cried, burrowing his face into Ignis’s shirt.

“I know.” Ignis was still trying to hold it together; be strong for Noctis.

“She’s my you when you can’t be here. She helps me, cares for me, makes me feel safe…makes me feel loved when you aren’t here.”

_Being strong was for the weak_ , Ignis thought as he finally allowed himself to break. He pulled off his glasses to set them on the back of the couch and he buried his face into Noctis’s hair. Ebony was going to be alright, the vet had sounded so sure of it, but the thought of that sweet and wonderful cat not being here was heartbreaking. And hearing Noctis explain exactly what she meant to him absolutely destroyed Ignis’s already broken heart. Ignis cried like he hadn’t for years.

“I love her, Ignis. I love her so much,” Noctis said, squeezing hard as Ignis just held and rocked him. Then Noctis pulled back, just enough so that two tear-streaked faces could look each other in the eyes. “I love her because she’s from you. I love her because she brought us back together. I love her because she does all the things we’re too old to do together anymore, like sleep in my bed when I have a bad dream. I love her because she is you in cat form and I love you so much.”

“Noctis,” Ignis murmured, stunned, but the prince’s response was to just bury his face back into Ignis’s shirt. It didn’t matter, whatever the meaning behind those words, they didn’t matter at the moment. All that mattered was that they were there for each other and for the youngest member of their little family.

They held each other and cried until they both fell asleep from exhaustion.

An hour or so later, an unsteady little ball of fur made her way to her food bowl and then managed to get up on the couch to join her loving humans in sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was my experience with a stroke, more or less. Granted, Molly was 12/13 when she had hers, so older. No idea what caused it, but waking up to see your sweet kitty walking around like she was drunk was devastating. I dunno how I managed to go and teach two classes that day while worrying about her.
> 
> Different vets may do different things, and maybe with Ebony being only a year old they might have done something more to figure out what happened? I dunno, so a little hand-wavy and shrugging, but Molly got the shots, liquid, and we went home. She was jumping on things the day of, so it's all my experience, as I say.
> 
> It's been three years and the only residual effect is sometimes Molly will lose her balance just a bit when she shakes her head hard. Otherwise, perfectly fine!


	11. The Day After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ignis stays home to care for Ebony while forcing Noctis to go to school. Noctis is none to pleased.

Noctis DID NOT want to go to school the next day. He fought hard with Ignis to stay home and be with Ebony.

“What if something happens? I need to be here for her!”

Compromise was Ignis would work from the apartment and send Noctis a picture of the cat between classes. The prince grumbled but accepted eventually.

Truth was that Ignis didn’t want to leave Ebony either and he certainly did not begrudge Noctis for wanting to stay home. However, it was a lot easier for him to read reports and answer emails from home than it was for Noctis to continue his education. Even though Regis knew how much Ebony meant to his son, Ignis doubted the king would like kindly truancy because of a sick cat.

At least it was Friday and Ignis wouldn’t have to fight for education tomorrow. He did wonder if Prompto would still be over for their usual gaming shenanigans though.

With Noctis off to school, Ignis sat at the kitchen table to flip through emails until someone arrived with his things from his office. There wasn’t too much of note except for a snarky email from Councilman Mercato asking how skipping out of work for a cat was considered professional. Ignis replied with something equally snarky and almost instantly got a response with nothing but a smile emoticon and “I hope she’s doing okay.” Ignis had always liked Mercato; he was one of the few who could see behind the ever-present mask Ignis wore to shroud his emotions.

Ignis made sure to send a picture of Ebony before Noctis’s first class started. She hadn’t moved from her napping spot since Noctis left, but Ignis knew he’d appreciate the first update.

Nothing of note happened during the morning hours. Ignis got his work which allowed him to read reports and make a few phone calls concerning the reports. He even managed to get into a meeting via conference call so that he could voice his opinions. All the while, Ignis kept his eye on the clock and made sure to send Noctis an update at the appropriate time. He knew those he was on the phone with had to be wondering what he was doing when he’d suddenly go quiet, but Ignis couldn’t find it in himself to care. He was prepared to say he had an order from the prince if it came to it.

After lunch, Ignis was once again settled at the table and going through different papers: reports given to him and notes he had taken at meetings. And even though he always kept half an eye on the time, he was completely surprised with Ebony was suddenly on the table with him and stepping on his papers.

She stumbled a bit as she made herself comfortable. Before long, she was laying on Ignis’s work, looking at him expectantly. He couldn’t help but laugh as he scratched her behind her ear just where she liked it.

“You must be feeling better if you are demanding so much attention,” Ignis said. She responded with a loud purr.

~*~*~*~*~

The door slammed open hard when Noctis entered the apartment. He was slightly out of breath from running all the way from school (Gladio would be proud) so that he could get back to Ebony.

“Is such a racket necessary?” Ignis called from the kitchen.

Noctis didn’t reply, instead he made a beeline towards Ebony; she was still sitting on Ignis’s papers.

“Hey, girl, how’re you doing?” he asked, happy to get an ear twitch and she turned to look at him before he got seated. “You doing good?”

“All that education and we still can’t get you to use correct grammar,” Ignis gave an amused sigh as he joined the pair.

“Ebony doesn’t care, do you?” She purred and leaned into his ear scratching. “Seriously, she’s been okay?” Noctis asked Ignis.

“Yes, she has been okay. I’ve watched her eat and used the litter today.”

“No drinking?”

“She still has the injected liquid in her, she doesn’t need more water.”

This was true, Noctis could still feel the liquid mass just under Ebony’s skin on her hip. It was strange to think that this was keeping her hydrated. He wondered how long it would stay there.

“She has also remained insistent that I stop working for the last couple of hours and refused to be moved from my papers. I eventually gave up and started working on dinner.”

“Good girl,” Noctis whispered, but he was very aware that Ignis heard him.

While Ignis worked in the kitchen, Noctis worked on things that he had missed in class the previous day as well as start on his homework. As 17:00 drew near, Ignis asked if Prompto was still going to come over.

“Yeah, but we thought we’d just watch a movie or something,” Noctis said. He then glanced over to where Ignis was looking at his phone. “So, you know, if you didn’t have any plans for the evening, you’re welcome to stay.”

Ignis looked over at him, surprised. “I don’t want to impede on your time with Prompto. You two rarely get to hang out outside of school or work.”

With a shrug, Noctis said, “You don’t have to, Specs. I just thought I’d ask. Prompto said he didn’t care if you stayed when I asked him. But I know you’ve been here all day and you probably do something on Friday nights anyway, so it’s whatever. Just thought I’d ask.”

Noctis hoped he came off as being nonchalant. He really and truly wanted Ignis to stay but he didn’t want it to seem like he did. The whole thing with Ebony had completely thrown him for a loop and at some point during the night—after the pair woke from their impromptu nap and went to separate bedrooms—Noctis realized that he had kind of confessed he was in love with Ignis. He couldn’t remember exactly what he said or how Ignis had responded, but he knew it happened. Part of him rationalized that everything would be okay if Ignis did stay to watch a movie. If he stayed, then it was just a thing that was said and taken as brotherly love or something, but if he didn’t stay, then it meant they would go back to square one with their seemingly fragile relationship.

Logically, Noctis knew that it was ridiculous to ride all of this on whether or not Ignis stayed, but logic wasn’t really on his side at the moment.

There were a few seconds of quiet contemplation when Ignis finally said, “I’ve a few errands I need to run, but if I finish up early enough, I’ll come back.”

It wasn’t an outright rejection and Noctis smiled. “Alright, cool.”

Ignis was gone when Prompto arrived. The blonde got in the door and instantly said, “Okay, where’s the sweet baby?” He didn’t wait for Noctis to answer as he went straight to the sofa where Noctis had deposited her when Ignis needed to gather his things. “Poor thing,” he cooed, giving her chin scratches and setting off her purr. “Look, I’ve got you something.” Prompto pulled out a little catnip mouse, let her sniff if, and placed it next to her. “A little get well present from Uncle Prompto.”

It was all Noctis could do to keep from crying at the thoughtfulness of his best friend.

After doting on Ebony for a few minutes, Prompto looked around the apartment. “Guess he decided not to stay.”

“He said he might be back if he got his errands done.”

“Ah. Is that Ignis speak for ‘I can’t say no to Noct, but I really don’t want to be here?’”

Noctis laughed, “Ignis can say no to me.”

“Since when?”

“Since this morning when he wouldn’t let me stay home with Ebony.”

“Ah, yes, good point. Good point,” Prompto laughed. “Good point. If he knew how distracted you were all day, he might have regretted making you go. You would have probably learned more by just letting me bring you your homework.”

“Shut up,” he said, giving Prompto a good shove. Both devolved into giggles for several minutes before Prompto proclaimed it was time to eat.

~*~*~*~*~

Everything in Ignis told him to stay away. The last time he had spent a Friday night with Noctis and Prompto things went south quickly. He didn’t want that again. Things were good with Noctis at the moment, save for an ill cat.

But he had been specifically invited and they weren’t going to be playing video games, which likely meant less rough-housing.

He could always feign wanting to be there for Ebony just in case the other two got distracted.

That’s what he told his usual Friday night group, anyway, that he remained worried for the cat and didn’t want to bring down the mood of their outing. They understood and told him they hoped Ebony was better soon.

After the (non)incident with Prompto, Ignis thought it best to find something to do on Friday nights; a weekly event as opposed to the occasional ask to go for a drink. There was a group of guard and glaive recruits that joined their respective groups around the same time Ignis did and they always went out to the bar on Friday nights. Ignis had been given a standing invitation that he had cashed in on a couple of times but now he was a regular. It was good for him and he knew it. It was a few hours that was his and he didn’t have to worry about Noctis. He even got a little action out of it. Nothing that would last, something he was adamant about before getting pulled into a dark corner, but it was a little added fun to an evening.

This Friday, however, he found himself standing outside of Noctis’s apartment door, wondering why he was here. Again, every instinct he had was reminding him of how horrible it was the last time but he wanted to spend time with Noctis that wasn’t centered around any sort of work.

He almost knocked three times before finally making himself do it one the fourth. He didn’t have to wait long before the door opened and the bright smile that greeted him shooed all the worries away.

“You made it!” Noctis said, stepping aside so Ignis could enter.

“The gods were on my side, it seems, none of the establishments had long lines,” he answered.

When he got into the living room, he saw Prompto lounging on the couch next to Ebony.

“Hey, Iggy!” he waved. “You made it just in time, we’re about to start the movie.”

While Noctis went to get Ignis a drink, the adviser took his usual seat next to the left armrest. “What are we watching?”

In reality, he needn’t have asked. The title screen for the DVD was all explosions behind a car that was in midair, but maybe there was something more to it.

“Just some stupid action movie,” Prompto answered. “One of those ones where you get annoyed if there’s a love interest because who wants to watch romance when there are things to blow up?”

“Mindless fun,” Noctis put in as he placed Ignis’s drink down.

Mindless? Yes. Fun? Ignis wasn’t sure he’d go that far, but it was entertaining. The other two were enjoying themselves, picking apart the plot and the probabilities of survival. That was the real fun, Ignis decided, listening to them have serious conversations before yelling at hero on screen for doing something stupid.

The next movie they put on was much calmer. There were still plenty of action sequences, but there was actually a story to go with it. They weren’t far into the second movie when Noctis shifted into his usual spot curled into Ignis’s side as if Ignis was a pillow. He tried really hard not to think about it or the fact that Prompto was right there but he couldn’t help the small smile that crossed his lips every time Noctis shifted a little as if to remind Ignis he was still there.

Before long, Ebony abandoned her spot next to Prompto to take up residence in that little opening between her humans where she loved to be.

When the movie finished, there was lots of stretching and yawning. Ignis and Prompto helped Noctis clear up a little and then Ignis offered to drive Prompto home. Prompto happily accepted.

The drive was spent with Prompto reliving some of his favorite scenes from the movies, laughing and joking. He quieted as soon as Ignis pulled up to his house.

“Hey, Ignis?”

“Yes?”

Prompto opened his mouth, closed it, and then said, “Thanks for the ride. I’ll see you later!”

He was gone before Ignis could inquire as to what he had really wanted to say. He knew he wasn’t going to just say thanks. What was going on inside that kid’s head?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure when the next update will be. I'm heading on a two week tour of Pennsylvania (I have a friend that lives near Pitt and a friend that lives near Philly) that I'm leaving for on Thursday. Dunno what my schedule will be in terms of writing, so it may be awhile before another update. Just a heads up!
> 
> Thanks for everyone who is going on this journey with me. You guys are amazing <3


	12. Back to Normal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two days later and everything is mostly back to normal, though Noctis convinced everyone he should take the weekend off.

Noctis managed to convince everyone that he needed to be home the entire weekend. Everyone knew how much Ebony meant to him and thus weren’t too put out by skipping out of training or the lone meeting on Saturday. Especially since Ignis still went to the meeting and was able to report back to Noctis on it.

The only thing that Noctis had to do (and didn’t try to get out of) was his few hours of work at the diner. This was after Ignis was back at the apartment and so he didn’t feel like he was abandoning Ebony.

It was the slow time between late lunch and early dinner where there wasn’t much for them to do, so while he and Prompto worked on refilling condiments, Prompto dared to ask.

“So…what’s up with you and Iggy?”

The question nearly sent Noctis out of his skin but he hoped he concealed how startled he was well. “What do you mean?”

“Just that, I dunno, you guys seem closer than I thought you were. I mean, I knew you were close, but I didn’t know you were ‘use him as a pillow’ close.”

“Well, I mean, we’ve known each other forever,” Noctis replied, hoping that that was enough of a reason and the subject would be dropped. For a moment, all seemed well.

Then Prompto said, “You guys looked so cute like that. Very domestic and sweet.”

Noctis wanted to refute it. Of course that wasn’t them: domestic. But before he could say anything, his phone buzzed and upon investigation, there was a picture text from Ignis. One that showed Ebony pushing her face into Ignis’s cheek. It wasn’t the most flattering picture of Ignis (good selfies being a skill that Ignis never wanted to try to perfect) but it let Noctis know that Ebony was okay. The message that came with it was _She’s pestering me and not letting me work._

If Noctis thought he was concealing his blush at Prompto’s words he was one-hundred percent sure he wasn’t now. A fact proven when Prompto shoved a phone in his face and his own visage was there. On it a look that could only be described as pure love looking back.

Noctis shoved the phone away. “What? I’m happy to see Ebony acting like herself.”

“Uh huh, yeah, Ebony.”

“Shut up.”

Prompto grinned that shit-eating grin that Noctis hated so much. “Whatever, dude. Deny it all you want, but it’s not just about Ebony.”

The prince rolled his eyes.

“But, if it makes any difference to you, I don’t think it’s just about Ebony for Ignis either.”

That gave something for Noctis to think about for the rest of his shift.

~*~*~*~*~

“How was work?” Ignis asked as Noctis came in.

“Fine, slow,” was the answer as Noctis made a beeline to Ebony. She was laying on the couch head up, eyes alert. Upon seeing him walk towards her, she got to her feet unsteadily and came to meet him.

“She is definitely feeling more herself,” Ignis said. “I believe she is getting frustrated with her inability to move like she wants to.”

“I know how you feel,” Noctis told her, rubbing his face on hers.

Ignis watched the two for a moment, thinking. He hadn’t connected the two events in his head, but of course Noctis would. He should have too if he was honest with himself. No wonder Noctis was insistent about being with her. The troubles she was having with her stroke was reminding the prince of the troubles he had after the attack. It wasn’t just about all those things he had told Ignis a few days ago.

A frown crossed his features as he thought about Noctis’s confession the other day. _I love you so much_ were the words he had said. Ignis knew those words were true but how were they meant? Brotherly love? Friendly love? Love love? With the situation as it was, any of those could be true. And even though he knew which one he longed for it to be, Ignis continued to be positive it would never happen. Noctis was prince, technically his employer, and he would have to bear heirs.

“Eos to Ignis.”

Ignis jumped. He was so lost in thought that he hadn’t realized that Noctis was trying to get his attention nor that he had joined him at the table.

“You okay?”

“Yes, sorry. Lost in thought.”

“What were you thinking about?”

“Nothing of consequence.”

Oh how Ignis wished that was true.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short update! Everything is great and fine and nothing bad is gonna happen to these sweet baby boys.
> 
> ::shifty eyes::


	13. Always Darkest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis overhears something he really wish he hadn't. Angst ensues.

Within a few weeks, one would never know that Ebony had ever had a stroke. True to what the vet had said, she bounced back from it quickly and was soon back to running around the apartment and bothering anyone she could for pets and cuddles. It was good to have things back to normal, especially as the end of the school year was quickly approaching and Noctis needed to put all his energy into his exams.

Noctis almost looked forward to training with Gladio on Saturdays. It was a chance to leave the books behind, and at the moment, that was what he needed.

This particular Saturday, Noctis was in his usual back corner of the locker room getting dressed after his shower when he heard the door open and close. He didn’t think much about it, people were always coming and going.

Then he heard something he wish he hadn’t.

“Did you see that chick that Scientia went off with last night?”

“Yeah, dude, she was smokin’!”

“He always gets the hotties. How does he do it?”

“Heh, have you seen him? Beyond just his looks, girls have a thing for glasses and accents.”

Anything else that was said, Noctis didn’t hear. The two had clearly come in just to grab something and be off again. He was glad he didn’t hear anything else because he wasn’t sure he could process what he did hear.

Ignis went off with girls? Different girls by the sound of it. Is that what he does on Fridays when Prompto is over? Picks up random girls and take them home? Was he making them breakfast before heading over to pick him up for training? Why didn’t Ignis tell him? Was he embarrassed? Noctis didn’t care what Ignis did, he wouldn’t judge…

His head fell into his hands. Lies. Of course he cared. Of course he didn’t want Ignis to go off with random girls. He didn’t want him to go out with girls! He wanted him to go out with him, Noctis! That was what he was supposed to be doing. Ignis was suppose to be happy with their little family and not trying to upend Ebony’s life!

Noctis sat in the locker room for so long that Ignis had to actually come in and find him. Before Ignis could even say anything, however, Noctis pushed past him and said he was going to walk home, not caring he was leaving Ignis staring after him dumbfounded.

~*~*~*~*~

“What are you still doing here?” Gladio asked when he entered the locker room. “Thought you came to grab Noctis to take home.”

“I…did.” Ignis hadn’t moved since Noctis had pushed past him several minutes ago.

“So, why are you still here?”

“I…” He hadn’t moved and he hadn’t figure out what he had done to get such a reaction out of Noctis. “His Highness seemed upset and didn’t want a ride home.”

“Really? He seemed fine during training,” Gladio frowned.

“Perhaps it is directed only at me, although I do not know what I’ve done to earn his ire.”

~*~*~*~*~

“What is wrong with you?” Prompto asked for what must have been the one hundredth time that day.

“Nothing” was always the answer.

Noctis knew he was being ridiculous. There was no reason to be angry at anyone, especially Prompto, but he couldn’t help it. All he kept thinking about was Ignis and some random woman in bed together and every time he thought that he’d get angrier, and sicker to his stomach, and a bit more depressed.

“Is it something to do with Ignis?” Prompto finally asked tentatively as the end of their shift neared.

The silence was telling.

“What happened, dude?”

“Remember a few weeks ago when you said it wasn’t just about Ebony for either me or Ignis?”

“…yeah?”

“Well, it is just about Ebony for him,” Noctis said quietly, trying hard to fight the tears that were coming now that he had voiced it

“Oh.”


	14. Dawn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let's just put it all out on the table for the world to see.

The apartment was dark when Noctis returned home. Usually Ignis left a light on if he came and went. No light meant that Ignis hadn’t been by. He didn’t know what he thought about that.

Ebony twisted around his feet as he stripped off his diner-smelling clothes and threw on sweats and a tee. Moving into the living room, he glanced towards the kitchen before deciding he wasn’t hungry and just sort of collapsed next to his couch instead of actually sitting on it. He pulled up his knees and buried his face. Ebony started nosing and pawing at him to figure out what was wrong.

“Oh, Ebony, how could I be so stupid?” he asked when he finally relented to her neediness.

“I know I should have never believed he could…we could…” he sighed, “but then Prompto said…and I thought maybe… How could I be so dumb?”

She only gave a little “murr” in answer.

Noctis didn’t move from that spot for hours. Sometimes he would absently pet Ebony, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave his couch. He barely had enough wherewithal to try to stretch out his right leg some to keep it from getting too stiff.

It was well past midnight when he heard the door to his apartment opened. He didn’t need to look up to know it was Ignis. He waited for him to say something, but instead Ignis just walked over to him and sat across from him, leaning his back against the wall.

Neither spoke for quite some time; they just sort of looked at each other.

Finally, Ignis said, “I don’t know what I’ve done to upset you.”

“Nothing, you’ve done nothing,” Noctis answered, averting his gaze.

“I must have done something.”

Noctis shook his head and went back to absently petting Ebony. They remained silent for several minutes before Noctis finally spoke again.

“Friday nights, when you are out with your buddies, do you… do you really… do you go off with girls?”

“Wha…?”

“Some guys came into the locker room while I was there and were talking about it.”

Ignis watched him for a few seconds before he sighed. “I do not leave with them.”

“So then...?”

“We will retire to a dark corner and enjoy each other’s company for a time, but we never leave.” Noctis didn’t know what to say to that. “I won’t anymore.”

“Ignis, no! That’s not what I want at all!”

“So, you weren’t angry with me because you heard that I did such?”

“NO!” Noctis cried, much louder than he should have. Then, “No. I’m not mad at you. I’m mad at myself.”

“Why would you be mad at yourself?” Ignis asked slowly.

Noctis sighed. “Because I listened to Prompto.”

The look that Ignis gave him was one of pure confusion. Noctis knew he might as well just bare his soul, get it out there, ruin everything forever, and hide away with Ebony until it was his turn to become king.

“Prompto said that we were ‘sweet and domestic’ looking when it came to Ebony. He said that the look I had on my face when it came to a picture of you and Ebony wasn’t just about her. He didn’t think it was just about Ebony for you either. And I liked that thought.

“I liked our little family. You and me and Ebony. I liked the thought of the three of us forever. Even though it was because Ebony was sick, I liked when you stayed the night. I liked falling asleep on you. I wanted to fall asleep with you. I…I like you but I know I can’t be with you because you would never want to be with me.”

“Noctis, stop.”

He hadn’t really been paying attention to anything other than his hands as he said those words. When Ignis spoke, he was suddenly aware the other had gotten much, much closer. Startled, Noctis looked up to see that Ignis had crossed the gap between them and their faces were just inches away.

“Ignis?” Noctis asked with the barest of breaths.

“I was jealous of Prompto,” Ignis said. “That night I watched you two play games. You were so comfortable with each other and touched each other in ways I wished I could. I only started going out on Fridays to keep myself from thinking about your friendship. I only started finding dark corners to enjoy the company of others to forget about you. The reason I avoided you for so long was because I realized I had feelings for you that I should not be having. I thought distance would help but it only hurt you. Now I find out that stealing a few moments with strangers has hurt you. I don’t want to hurt you, Noct. I never want to hurt you.”

“So, don’t.”

“You know it’s not that easy. There are rules. Propriety. The counc—”

Noctis didn’t want to hear it. All his life he had to deal with the things he could and couldn’t do. Even though his father hadn’t been as strict about living the life of a prince as he could have been, there was still so much he couldn’t do because of his station. He didn’t want to be told again and certainly not by Ignis. He stopped Ignis by placing a finger on his lips.

“Ignis, please. Please. For once, toss out the notions of rules or royalty and just do what you want.”

“Are you sure?”

Noctis nodded and before he could blink he felt Ignis’s lips on his. They sort of slammed into his and it was rather uncomfortable. There was a quick apology before a second attempt was made. This one was much better. Soft, sweet, and a hint of what more could come. Noctis was breathless when Ignis pulled away.

They smiled at each other, shyly. Neither were quite sure what to say to the other, but in reality, no words really needed to be said. Noctis’s smile widened a little as Ignis began to lean back in, he closed his eyes in anticipation, leaning a little himself, but then there was a sharp pain in his leg and an annoyed meow.

Both men turned their heads to see Ebony with one paw on Noctis’s leg looking a bit grumpy. Laughing, they stood, Noctis picking up Ebony and Ignis heading towards the kitchen to fix her some food.

It was no wonder that she was finally asking for it. She had only been concerned with Noctis’s bad mood when he came in even though Noctis neglected to feed her. Now, the sky outside was beginning to lighten just a bit as dawn was quickly approaching. Noctis had spent the entire night hunched up against his couch. Ignis spent much of that time with him.

Once Ebony was fed, there was no discussion about crawling into bed together to sleep. Noctis immediately walked into his room and collapsed in his bed. Ignis joined him soon after sans the dress shirt he had worn over to the apartment. He nudged the prince over to crawl into bed with him. Noctis immediately curled into him. There was a kiss on the crown of his head before the prince was fast asleep in the exact place he wanted to be. Ignis remained awake long enough to know that Ebony had joined them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY! Amitrite?


	15. Epilogue: Three Years Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three Years Later

Ignis was moving around the apartment frantically. It seemed like everything he wanted or needed was not where he last remembered it being. And, why wasn’t everything together in one place? He did not need this right now.

“Noctis, are you almost ready?” He called as he grabbed his cufflinks off the counter. “We cannot be late!”

“It’s just dinner with Dad,” Noctis returned. “Don’t worry so much!”

“Easy for you to say,” Ignis muttered to himself.

This particular dinner didn’t seem like normal dinner with Regis. Dinner was usually planned weeks in advanced because the king was always so busy. This came out of nowhere. Ignis had been leaving a meeting earlier when Regis stopped him to invite him and Noctis to dinner that evening. There was even a tone to Regis’s voice that made him feel that this was a very important meeting.

It worried him. Noctis would say everything worried him, but this seemed a little more real than usual. Niflheim was being a bit noisier lately and the council loves to talk about using Noctis as a pawn for peace. Political marriage had been brought up more than once these last few years despite everyone being very aware of their relationship.

Noctis exited the bedroom looking as calm as usual and handed Ignis his jacket. While Ignis slipped it on, Noctis dropped to his knee to tie his shoes.

“It’s okay for you to calm down, Specs,” Noctis said with a laugh.

Before Ignis could reply, Ebony suddenly appeared on Noctis’s shoulder. She had taken to jumping up there whenever he was bent over for shoes or cleaning. Noctis leaned his head into her body to say hello and Ignis frowned.

“You’ll get cat hair all over your clothes,” Ignis said, moving his head to the right in a sharp fashion, hoping Ebony would jump off on her own.

“What? Her hair’s black and my clothes are black. No one would even know,” Noctis answered.

“It’s the principle of the matter,” Ignis sighed. He had never learned to swat Ebony off something (after she learned to stay off the counter anyway) and so he carefully picked her up to put her down. As he did so, though, he noticed something and rolled is eyes. “Noctis, really? Another new collar?”

“What? I liked that one.”

 _You like all of them_ , Ignis thought to himself, but said nothing as he quickly inspected it. Red leather with an elongate silver plate that had Ebony’s name and…no. No. That’s not what that said at all.

Ignis blinked a few times being sure that he was actually reading the words ‘Marry me?’ on the collar before he finally believed that that was indeed what was there. He looked towards Noctis, who was still on one knee, but now he was holding out a ring.

“Will you marry me?” Noctis asked, saying out loud the words Ignis had read.

He said nothing. How could he? There were too many things going through his brain at the moment. He lowered Ebony but didn’t put her down. He stared blankly at Noctis.

“Hey, Iggy, could I get an answer here? My knee is—”

Mention of any ailment on Noctis was a sure-fire way to get Ignis’s brain kickstarted again. Dropping Ebony, he immediately pulled the prince to his feet.

“Oh, Astrals, yes, Noctis. Yes!” He sealed the answer with a good, long kiss.

When they parted, Noctis slipped the ring on Ignis’s finger. It was simple looking; platinum with a small band of alternating sapphires and emeralds on the top with a black diamond in the center. Ignis knew immediately that it represented their family. It would be some time before he could stop looking at it.

“It’s beautiful, Noct.”

He seemed almost embarrassed at the praise. “Yeah, well, it took some time to get it right. Dad’s jeweler is amazing and very patient.”

Ignis laughed and kissed his fiancé again. He was honestly almost ready to drag Noctis back to the bedroom to properly thank him when the word ‘dad’ flashed in his mind. He ended the kiss abruptly.

“Astrals, your father! Dinner!” Panic mode kicked in again.

“Calm down, Ignis,” Noctis laughed. “He’ll understand if we’re a little late. But, you’re right, we shouldn’t keep him waiting. I’m sure he’s anxious to know your answer.”

“He knew you were going to ask?”

“Yes. Tonight was either going to be a celebratory dinner or a strategic dinner to figure out the best way to ruin your life,” Noctis laughed. Ignis paled. Upon seeing that, Noctis rolled his eyes. “Geeze, Ignis, breathe. It’s a joke. One that doesn’t even matter because you said yes.”

“I know, I know, it’s just…”

Noctis leaned up to kiss Ignis on the nose. “Come on. The sooner we get to dinner, the sooner we can get home and have dessert.”

“Dessert?” Ignis asked, intrigued. “What, pray tell, is for dessert?”

“You’ll see,” Noctis laughed.

As they headed out the door, Ebony walked over to the little step up to see them out. Both gave her some good ear scratches and a kiss to the top of the head before leaving.

“You know,” Ignis said as they made their way towards the elevator, “I think that’s my favorite collar yet.”

Noctis grinned, “Yeah, I don’t see me changing it anytime soon.”

“Good.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the official end. YAY!
> 
> Honestly, the only thing I originally had for this was Ignis complaining about cat hair and Noctis being all like "whatevs, everything is black." Then I had to go to the drug store and everything else came so I had to write it immediately.
> 
> The last chapter will be something COMPLETELY different, but hopefully it'll be good?


	16. Canon Compliant Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let's say Ebony went through the fall...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While working on this, I had feelings about what would happen to Ebony should experience the Fall of Insomnia. So I thought about how she would find the boys again.
> 
> I'll trust everyone can figure out who Ebony refers to everyone as :D

Ebony was annoyed. Her people had brought her to the big house and basically abandoned her. They didn’t seem happy. Home seemed depressed and Found seemed on edge. Found was always on edge, but this was more so. They had packed up the place that she lived with Home, said they had to go away for a bit, but they would be back soon.

What was soon? The halls of the big house were some what interesting to explore, but the humans kept her confined to just a few places. Some people would take her to the outside. She was nervous at first, the last she remembered of the outside was before Found had discovered her and taken her to Home. This outside seemed relatively contained though. And soft with grass. Other cats would come around and provide some entertainment, but Ebony wanted Home and Found. She liked them. They took care of her and she took care of them.

A few days after she had been dropped off at the big house, there was certainly some frenzied excitement among the humans. She couldn’t figure out what was going on but she knew she had basically been relegated to the smallest garden until whatever was over. At least there was some nice sun spots to sleep in.

Her sleep was rudely interrupted by a very sudden shake and loud noise. Ebony looked up to see the sky breaking. That seemed…off. She had never known about the sky breaking before. Humans were shouting and she could see them running. One of the garden cats called for her to follow and she didn’t see how she couldn’t. Whatever was going on, she knew she would likely die if she stayed where she was. Hopefully she could find Home and Found later.

She followed the cat through tunnels and along pipes until they were out of the big house completely. The world was in chaos. Buildings were falling, humans were dying, and it was all Ebony could do to stay alive as she ran off with the other cats of the area. Not all of them made it, she watched horrified as several were squashed by falling building stone. Many of them got separated from each other and it would be several days before anyone deemed it safe to fully explore the ruins of their city.

And what ruins it was. They had remained near the big house, but there was no going back to it now. Everything around them was either dead or dying. The cats that survived started heading away from the big house. Hunting any small animal that they came across. Ebony was thankful the other cats were patient in teaching her how to hunt. They did not begrudge her the lifestyle she was used to. They were all the same now.

Days turned to weeks as the group of cats made their way to the edge of the city. They hunted when possible and dodged out of the way of anything that looked to be hunting them. For the most part their group stayed intact but one or two were lost along the way.

Once outside the large walls, life was moderately easier. Small animals were more abundant and easier to catch. There were rumors of a human settlement not far away that might supply scraps to strays they kept the rodent population to a minimum.

This was the journey that took its toll on the group. Meaner animals during the day and evil daemons during the night. It was not easy to get significant distance, hunt, and sleep while trying to avoid death. Their group shrank nearly every day until only three of them managed to make it to the first human settlement along the road.

No one wanted to try to go any farther. Other animals (cats and dogs) had made mention of better places to be, but this would do. There was a cranky old man who muttered how much he hated the strays but he still managed to toss a few bits of his sandwich over to them. There was a kind lady who was always good for ear rubs and a cook who wasn’t shy about giving them scraps left from other humans.

It wasn’t the life that Ebony wanted, but at least it was a life.

Every time she slept, she wondered where her people were. Were they alive? Safe? Would she ever see them again? Does Home still get sad and couldn’t sleep? Does Found know when to stop working and just relax? She worried for her people and she hoped they worried for her.

Days became meaningless as her new home was safe from the things she could see crawling around outside of the settlement. Ebony would sometimes listen to the humans that came through, but she had long given up hope that Home or Found would be one of them.

Then one day, her ear twitched at the sound of humans coming into the settlement. She had been sleeping in a box with a couple of other cats when something caught her ear. Listening intently, she heard the kind lady.

“Y’all are cuttin’ it close now, aren’tcha?” she said. Ebony knew that was because it was almost fully dark and the daemons would be coming out soon.

“Yes, well, someone was insistent on not camping tonight.”

That voice was familiar. Loud, deep. It almost sounded like Big.

“My back cannot take one more night of sleeping on stone,” said another. This voice Ebony knew. This voice she would know anywhere.

Home.

She left her sleeping pile, annoying her sleepmates, and made her away to the front of the building.

There they were. Home and Found. Big and Little as well. She watched as Home stretched a bit and when he bent over to stretch his back some more, Ebony bounded towards him, leapt on his back, and took her favorite spot on his shoulder. She rubbed her face against his and purred loudly.

“EBONY!” Home cried, pulling her around to hold and look at her. “Astrals, Ebony, it’s really you!”

“MEOW,” she responded as Home pulled her close to his chest and hugged her.

“No way,” Little said.

“I’ll be dammed,” Big muttered.

Found just came over to her and Home and Home immediately transferred her to Found’s arms. She rubbed her face and purred all over Found. She also batted at his glasses some. He hated that.

“We’ve had several strays take up residence here. Figured some might’ve come from the city, but never knew it’d be your own, Prince!” the lady laughed.

“I can’t believe you’re here,” Home said, taking her back from Found. “Oh, Ebony, you have no idea how glad I am to see you.”

There were tears. Oh, no, Ebony made Home cry. She put her paw on his nose in hopes that he would stop crying. He didn’t, but at least he laughed before another hug. Found still hadn’t said anything and she could tell he was still working too hard. But, they were together and that was important. And now that she was with them, she could help them once again.

Big and Little wandered off while Home and Found took her to little house near the food place. Together they sat on the bottom bed and Ebony moved back and forth between them getting all the pets and scratches and hugs she could get.

“I can’t believe she made it, Iggy,” Home said.

“Truly a miracle,” Found finally found his voice.

Ebony the miracle. Yeah, she liked that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ebony traveled with them as much as she could but stayed at Caem once they got there.
> 
> She fretted the day of the covenant with Leviathan and the others at Caem didn't know why or what to do to help her. She also knew when Noctis went into the Crystal.
> 
> She stayed with Ignis through the long night, except when he'd go out on hunts. Otherwise, she was his constant companion, riding his shoulder.
> 
> After the Dawn, she and Ignis comforted each other best they could, but when she knew her days were ending, she made her way to the throne room. There she laid to sleep one last time.
> 
>  
> 
> ...I'm making myself cry in my end notes D:


End file.
